Rochester Aug 31. 1847.
My Dearest Marianne- I came to this City
about 3 o'clock this morning, from Baldwinsville.
where I had spent two days with brother Ja-
cob & his family; & with Myson who met me
in Syracuse the morning after our arrival.
I got your letters at Syracuse & this morning
both of those directed to me at this City. You can
hardly think how invaluable your letters are
to me; & more of this morning which [underline] "report prog-
ress" [/underline] were peculiarly gratifying. I am not senti
mental nor babyish, when I say, that you dont
know  how lonesome & homesick I am at times
& how almost constantly, my heart yearns to
beat against thine own. Dearest, may the happy
news of improved health, add wings to every
letter, which you may send me in future
I love to think of you as sweet & serene, & as bliss
ful as Paradise could render you. The calm
ness of great & pure thought, the inspiration
of the deepest and holiest love, & the charm
of poetic beauty would infold thy life, if-
a fond husband could realize his prayers
for thee. Thou gem set within my being, [strikethrough] and [/strikethrough]
which gives it all it's beauty. How I long 
to have that beauty so reflected back upon
you, as to make you the mother of angels
O my dearest Marianne, do keep within you the heaven of
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a mind consecrated to great & active thought
smitten with the love of beauty & exalted
by the purest devotion. I must beg the good
angels to introduce you into the society of the
Great, the Good, & the Beautiful, for I am too
poor, too groveling & unworthy to approach you.
O I would that I could command all perfect spir
its, to create a world of beauty for you. You
will not I am sure allow any thought about
our future prospects to be any other than pleasant
& cheerful to you. I am sure that all will
be well & we may be happy & more than all
[underlie] useful [/underline], which is to be beautiful indeed.
You are wondering that I have not written
[strikethrough] before [/strikethrough] earlier since leaving Utica, but I have been
exceedingly busy, & have not had a moment
of time, even for rest. We had only two mee-
tings in Syracuse, & we were both so fatigued
with our efforts at Utica that we did not do
so well as we should have liked to do; but the
audiences were very much pleased & so we
concluded to be pleased also. Our meetings
were small but composed of the very best
people in the place. This you know was the
grand center of Mr Collins agitation & we
had supposed that [---]hioning would hardly be
possible for any kind of social reform lecture
but the citizens of this place are well aware
of all the courses of Collins' failure, & don't
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judge even Communism, by that phenomenon
much less Association. Samuel J. May was
exceedingly hospitable & generous towards us;
& did all in his powers to aid us. We have been
unanimously requested by [strikethrough] all [/strikethrough] our hearers, to visit
Syracuse in November & to hold meetings for
three weeks, & at their expense. Samuel J. May
Mr Joseph Savage Mr Stephen Smith & the editor
of the Star, are foremost in making the
requests. Messrs Savage & Smith were the ear
liest & latest friends of Collins' Movement, &
are the wealthiest citizens in Syracuse. Is there
not cause for encouragement!
On Saturday afternoon Myson & myself went to
Baldwinsville together & spent two days. Myson's
health is considerably improved, & he is on his
way to Wisconsin. He left Ferrisburgh about a week
ago. Mother was quite unwell. Her eyes were quite
sore & painful, & her feet were so swollen from
inflammatory rheumatism, that she was unable
to walk. He felt very badly about leaving her at
such a time, but it was concluded to be best that
he should meet me, which he did accordingly. I
had a very good visit at my brother's, & found them
in much better circumstances than I had ex
pected. On Monday afternoon, I took my leave of
them; Jacob & Myson taking me in a wagon, about
eight miles, to the rail-road. It was exceedingly hard
to part with Myson. He never appeared so good
to me as he did at Baldwinsville. He is a young
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man of a beautiful spirit, & of incorruptible integri
ty. He wanted to have received a letter from you in an
swer to his, before leaving home. He often spoke ve-
ry affectionately of you, & of the delight it would
have afforded him, to have analyzed flowers
with you, & to have rambled [strikethrough] together [/strikethrough] with you in search
of new varieties. He sends his love to you, & wishes [strikethrough] me [/strikethrough]
you to write him a letter, which shall reach Fond-
-du-lac by the time he does. He will remain
a week longer with Jacob. Brother jacob and
his wife, Caroline, send their love to you, & desire to
see you very much.
The prospect for meetings in this city is less fa-
vorable than that of any place which we have
previously visited. It is the nest wherein was
hatched that anomalous brood of birds, called
[underline] the "Sodus Bay Phalanx" the "Clarkson Phalanx"
the "Bloomfield Phalanx" & the "Manchester
Union" [/underline]. The very name of Association is odi-
ous with the public, and the unfortunate
people who went into these movements, in such
mad haste, have been ridiculed till endu
rance is no longer possible; & they are slunk
away from the sight & knowledge of their neigh
bors. There are some who always were & will be
so poor as to have nothing to sacrifice that are
still as open before the world as they can be- &
there are two or three families however, of those
whose circumstances command their in-
fluence, that are steadfastly Associationists. We
shall make an effort to give two lectures here
& afterwards determine what else is to be done in the
				premises-
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Sept. 7
Mr Brisbane met us here yesterday morning
but he returned to Batavia in the evening. He
appeared very well excepting that his eye troub
les him a good deal now- he is going to make
arrangements for our lectures in Batavia &
vicinity & in Buffalo, but he thinks nothing
can be done west of Rochester in the state
of New York. I think now of going to Buffalo
& then of returning to Canandaigua, Waterloo
Seneca Falls- Kingston, Poplar Ridge, West
moreland, Utica, Hamilton, Troy, Cohoes
Falls, Springfield & home. I ought to have
six weeks, aye two months, to make these visits in
, but shall not have more than four weeks.
Brisbane tells us to come to Batavia, & he will
see that we have a good home, & are treated
as gentlemen. He is just as full of the great
things which he is going to do as ever. I wish
he would get some of them out especially
Fourier's Translation. But I think he begins
to regard it important that there should be
a [underline] commentary [/underline] accompanying it, & he is go
ing to write it. Much good will it do the
world, when he published Fourier's Universal
Unity. Mr Ripley had better take the Translation
& give it to the Boston Union or to Frank
Shaw if he desires that the world should be
benefitted by it.
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There are some interesting facts connected
with the fortunes of some of the [underline] Phalanxes [/underline]
in this neighborhood which I mean to ob
tain if possible. So far as I have been a-
ble to learn the fortunes do but prove the
practicability of Fourier's Theory.
Poor John Allen is in a quandary that his [underline] Dul
cinea del Toboso [/underline] does not write him a letter
Now if I were but as expert as Sancho Panza
I could write him one that would answer at
will. I imagine that he begins to suspect that
he has not got such hold on her affections
as he had promised himself. [underline] Nous verrous [/underline]
He is determined not to be worsted in the contest.
As to writing for the Harbinger I begin to
think that it is entirely out of the question.
I cannot find the time except when I am
too much fatigued to attempt it. I wonder
if the Executive Committee of the Union have
any idea of the nature of lecturing. I should
like to see Messrs Ripley Dwight & Channing do
ing what we are obliged to do in almost every
place. In the first place we have to spend
sometimes two days in running about [strikethrough] in upon [/strikethrough] calling
upon such persons as we can ascertain
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take any manner of interest in Association, if
we cannot find any of this class, we then ask
for reformers of any & all kinds- Nationals Pro-
tectionists, Leaguers or anything else. At the end
of the second day we can usually get a meeting
Sometimes there will be a dozen & sometimes
twice that number at the first meeting.
Having got one meeting we determine to push
it: to hold on until we make an impression.
This is a glance at the [underline] attractive industry [/underline] of a lec
turing group. I hope some of the [underline] "School" [/underline] will
ere long have a taste of the [underline] luxury of doing
Good. [/underline] Much of the time we are obliged to travel
all night & catch what sleep we can in a jamb
ed packing-boat, or in the cars of the worst
rail-road imaginable. But `tis all right or
at least will soon be so.
Now blessed one you are wearied to death with
the stupidity of this endless scrall so here it
ends with my warmest love to all our folks
I am all the while reproaching myself with not
having made the provision I wanted to for your
comfort- Mother is killing herself with caring
for you. Send your next letter to King's Ferry
Coyuga Co. Yours ever dearest
				John

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[address] 

Mrs. John Orvis
	Brook Farm
		West Roxbury
			Mass.